Titan Tango
by Queen of the Ramen
Summary: Spike/River - Based on the Spring Kink prompt "She knew everything about him, and that intrigued him and terrified him at the same time. It certainly made it difficult to actually do his job."


Spike sauntered into the casino, letting his blue leisure suit jacket dangle over his shoulder from the tips of two fingers. His cigarette hung between his lips in a similar lackadaisical manner. Scanning the floor he spotted his bounty at the roulette wheel. He was living _la buena vida_ with a cigar in one hand and a glass of sherry in the other, which sloshed onto the busty blonde hanging onto his elbow as he excitedly pumped one arm when his number came up. His target was non-descript with sandy brown hair and a pinstripe suit. She had blonde hair piled high on her head, ruby red lips and a figure hugging dress that matched said lips, which barely covered any of her considerable assets.

As he walked over to the table he thought back to the dossier Jet had given him about the bounty. His name was Charles Pendergrast, a small time mobster on Mars who had made it big by stealing billions of woolongs from the syndicate he belonged to. He had also taken his boss' girlfriend, which had made the wife happy, but the boss not so much. He wanted them both back with as little to do as possible, and his money, of course. That's why he had sent the bounty request directly to the _Bebop_ crew instead of airing it on **Big Shot**. Apparently he had heard good things about them, which had caused Spike to smirk and Faye to laugh out loud. They had tracked him to this casino on Titan. Faye had taken off for parts unknown that morning, leaving them high and dry. He always enjoyed a bit of gambling, although he usually preferred card games.

As he sidled up to the roulette table he palmed the chips in his hand, which represented the last of the _Bebop_ crew's cash. Their dwindling food stores depended on his being able to pull this off without a hitch. Nobody bothered to look up at his arrival except for a tall, lithe young woman, who looked to be strikingly beautiful behind the curtain of wavy brown hair that hid most of her face from his view. She wore a long black dress that clung to her bosom before flowing gracefully to the floor. Spike could see flashes of pale leg through two slits that ran up each side to mid-thigh, though the enticing sight was mostly blocked by the table. Next to her was a tense looking young man impeccably dressed in a three piece suit. He kept nervously placing a hand on her forearm every so often as if to reassure himself that she was still there, and she gave him a serene smile each time he did so. She kept peering at Spike surreptitiously and when he caught her eye she winked at him.

All the other gamblers at the table were drab blobs in expensive looking evening wear. The dealer was a lovely woman in a slinky burgundy gown, her curly mahogany hair held up in a loose ponytail which cascaded across her rich toffee colored neck, which bore an odd necklace that seemed to be made out of shoe strings. She nodded at Spike as he laid a few chips down on fourteen red and at the others as they placed their bets. She gave the wheel a sharp spin and shortly afterward waved a hand over table. "No more bets."

Everyone was on edge as the wheel spun, eventually winding down until it stopped, the ball settling at - "Black 35!" the dealer announced. Groans were heard from around the table, including from Spike as she placed a marker on the number's spot and collected the losing bets, giving them to the winning player. The brown haired girl peered at Spike as she collected her winnings before looking the chips over with apparent boredom and handing them to her gentlemen friend.

He was supposed to watch the pair until they retired to their hotel room, where Jet was already waiting. He and Ed had snuck in disguised as staff and Ed had hacked the electronic lock. They would capture Charles and the syndicate boss' girlfriend and force them to reveal the location of the stolen woolongs before turning them and it into the syndicate for the bounty. Spike kept a close eye on Charles throughout the ensuing spins. He won a few but mostly lost, he didn't have the "luck" of Faye at this kind of game. The girl continued her streak of good luck, with only the occasional loss. Charles seemed unhappy with the way things were going and huffed off to the dance floor, dragging his girlfriend behind him. Spike slipped on his jacket and followed close behind, tracking them, his few remaining chips jouncing in his pants pocket.

He felt a tap on his shoulder as he stood, watching them, on the edge of the dance floor. He tensed and turned around. It was the girl from the roulette table, her friend struggling through the crowd to catch up with her. "Wǔdǎo?" She held out a hand to him. He shook his head. He had to keep an eye on Charles, he didn't have time for fun. "Dance," she said again, before grabbing his hand and pulling him onto the throng. There was no resistance from Spike. Maybe it would be easier to spy on Pendergrast _et al_ from within the madding crowd.

Spike whirled her around the dance floor as best he could. Things went smoothly despite his not inconsiderable lack of experience at this, especially at ballroom dancing. She seemed to have a natural grace that managed to make even him look good. He was extra careful to not trod on the edge of her gown, which was so long it touched the floor as nimbly twirled around. He was even able to keep an eye on Pendergrast while doing it. He seemed to be having an equally good time with his dance partner.

"Who's your friend?" Spike asked, gesturing to the man who was now heatedly talking to a couple that had been at the table next to theirs, the three of them watching him.

"My brother," she said. "Who's _your_ friend, Mr. Spiegel?" She tilted her heads towards Pendergrast.

Gǒu shǐ! She had caught him watching him, he only hoped Pendergrast hadn't noticed. It took him a second before he realized she had called him by his name, when he had never introduced himself.

"Thank you for the dance," she said as the song ended, giving him a mischievous smile as she started to leave the dance floor. This time it was Spike who grabbed _her_ by the hand. She was too intriguing to let go just yet.

The next song was much more lively and they moved closer together, cheek to cheek as they tangoed. "Anything the matter, Mr. Spiegel?" she breathed into his ear.

"Call me Spike," he replied. "What should I call you?"

"Anything you want." He dipped her and caught a flash of bare foot as one leg swept up into the air. This girl was odd. "Most people call me strange. Or crazy. But you can call me River." He pulled her back up. "That's my name."

"So, River." Spike began. "Why do people call you crazy?"

"Because I am," River replied, with a casual shrug. "Yīnwèi tāmen ràng wǒ zhèyàng." Her face turned dark but quickly cleared. She traced the character for "present" on his right cheek and "past" on his left. "Past and present," she murmured. "But no future?"

Spike was shaken by this. "The past doesn't matter and the future doesn't exist. There is only the present."

"Past, present and future are all one." He whirled her around him. "They all exist at once. Past, present and all possible futures." She pressed close to him. "Which future will you choose, Spike? Will you be caught in the cycle of violence?" She was close to him again. "Will you find your Julia?"

He backed away from, held her at arm's length and stared at her.

"I think your bounty's getting away." He quickly turned around and saw that she was right, Pendergrast was making his way off the dance floor, dodging dipping and spinning limbs, dragging his quietly sobbing girlfriend behind him. "Zhù nín hǎo yùn." River said before he rushed off.

Spike cursed under his breath as he struggled to catch up with them. River was definitely intriguing but also more then a little bit scary, she knew far too much about him. She was certainly making this job harder then he had expected. He briefly wondered if he should brush off this job and go back to her, but his grumbling stomach quickly dissuaded him. He needed this.

Spike quickly got close enough that he wasn't worried about losing them again and followed them at a distance, staying close to walls and hiding around corners. He didn't want them getting suspicious this close to the end. Pendergrast kept a firm hold of his girlfriend's arm as he lugged her through the hallways of the hotel adjoining the casino. Spike kept one hand on the gun tucked into the waistband of his suit.

Before too long they reached the hotel room and Charles swiped his keycard through the electronic lock, shoving the woman through the door before it had a chance to fully open. She fell to the floor with a cry and one of her high heels flew off. "Oh shut up, Diane!" Charles yelled out, raising a hand and advancing towards her. Spike saw his opening and rushed down the hall, knocking the door all the way open when he crashed through it, keeping his momentum going and bringing Charles down. They fell onto the bed with Charles on the bottom and Spike on top. He quickly maneuvered his knee into the small of the other man's back and withdrew his gun, pressing it into the base of his skull.

"Bù, bù!" Diane cried out, quickly scrambling so that her back was against the wall, holding her hands up in a gesture of supplication.

"What do you want?" Pendergrast cried out, his voice muffled by the comforter.

"It's not what I want," Spike said, cooly. "It's what your boss wants. And he wants you, and his girl, and his money."

"Yes, yes!" Diane cried out. "Take me! Take me away from him! He kidnapped me, I never wanted to go with him!"

"Nǐ biǎo zi!" Charles cursed. "You were plenty happy when it was just you and me and the gorramed money. Happy to spread your legs like a cheap doxy."

"Fuck you!" Diane spat at him.

"Enough!" Spike dug his knee down hard into Pendergrast's back. "Where are you, Jet?"

Jet strolled out of the bathroom, chuckling, holding two sets of handcuffs in one hand and his gun in the other. "Sound like you were doing fine without me." He handed one pair to Spike and helped Diane to her feet, securing her hands behind her back and binding them.

Spike was about to do the same when he heard a knock at the door. "Expecting someone?" Spike asked Pendergrast, securing the cuffs around his captive wrists.

"No," Pendergrast mumbled.

"Ask who it is," Spike said. "And don't try anything." He lifted Charles' head from the comforter so he could answer, while pressing the gun further into his neck.

"Who is it?" Pendergrast asked, his voice trembling.

"It's River," came the reply. "Can I come in, Spike?"

Jet looked at Spike, raising an eyebrow. He gestured for him to open the door.

"Hello, Spike." River stood in the doorway, hands bunched in her loose flowing skirt, revealing much of her lower legs and her bare feet. Once he was able to look away he noticed the four people standing behind her, three whom held guns. Her recognized her brother and the two people he'd been talking to on the casino floor, the fourth person was their roulette dealer. "Can we come in?"

The fighting was mostly hand to hand since nobody was willing to shoot not knowing who they would hit in such close quarters. The only one not fighting was River, who stood on top of the bed watching it all, detached. Even her brother was fighting, although he certainly didn't look used to it. Spike took advantage of the confusion and grasped River around the waist, carrying her into the bathroom and locking it after him. The sounds of fighting was muffled by the bathroom door but quickly stopped altogether, replaced by a somewhat stunned silence.

River sat calmly on the edge of the Jacuzzi as Spike paced across what turned out to be a quite spacious bathroom. He could hear them trying to open the door. "You better not do anything to my sister!" He supposed that was the brother who had been keeping such a close eye on her. He didn't know who the other two were but he recognized them from the casino floor.

"Are planning on doing anything to me, Spike?" River asked. It didn't sound lewd coming from her.

Āiyā! What was this girl trying to do to him? He decided to call her bluff. "Do you want me to?"

She crossed her legs, giving him a pleasing glimpse of bare skin. "Maybe," she replied.

Spike felt a stirring in his groin. This was neither the time nor place to think about such things, in the middle of a job. But he couldn't help it, she just did something to him. But he still didn't trust her.

More banging and cursing noises from the other side of the door as they tried to force it open.

"Wěn wǒ." River said, her voice firm. She stood up and Spike strode across the room, still with the gun loosely grasped in his hand. He grasped her by the shoulders, trying not to dig the gun into her back, but not willing to put it up. He kissed her, hard. She kissed back with equal fervor. That's when the door burst open.

"River!" her brother exclaimed. Jet and the other two had amused look on their faces.

River and Spike parted. "Hi, Simon," River said to her brother. "Mal, Zoe, Inara." She said to the trio. "Jet."

"What are you doing with my sister?" Simon rushed over to her.

"Yeah, Spike," Jet laughed.

"Ha ha ha," Spike said.

"He helped," River said. "We'll split the bounty."

"Split the bounty?!" Jet and Mal said in unison.

"Or we can keep fighting until somebody gets hurt," River remarked calmly.

"It is a rather large reward, Captain," Zoe said.

After a round of negotiations they agreed to split the bounty equally, since they agreed that River had helped Spike and _vise versa._. River cornered Spike after this.

"So, Spike," she said. "Which future will you choose?"

"You drive me crazy," Spike said. "And I don't know if I can trust you. You seem to know me. I don't know you. But I think I want to."

"I don't know if you want to want," River said, eyes downcast. "You might not like what you see. I'm broken. Simon's tried to fix me, but he ain't the right kind of doctor to fix what's wrong with me." She looked up into his eyes.

"Not everything broken needs to be fixed." Spike replied.

"You'll see," River replied. "I'm doin' okay now. Not for long. Can't stay like this for long." She held her hands to the side of her head. "It don't work right, it don't work right, it don't-" Spike cut her off with a kiss. She calmed down a bit. "You help. Help make it less jumbled."

"I'm glad," Spike said.

"Will you come with us to _Serenity_?" River asked. There was a plea in her voice. "You'd like her. She's a good girl."

Spike nodded. "Can't say that I'll stay, but I'll visit your ship."

"A possible future," River said, smiling.


End file.
